My Influences - Studying how I came to be Me

I've been spending a lot of time thinking lately about how I came into being the person I am. That led me to examine parts of my life that I have found to have been influential.  I thought maybe I should catalog some of it, since maybe it would help me to ground some of those lessons, and reconnect to some of the things that matter to me.

I think one of the most important aspects of who I am has been my walk as a spiritual seeker. Not that I am aiming to FIND anything, but I am absolutely curious about the world, and I collect experiences the way some people collect snowglobes. So I've been a seeker of connections. (Not a seeker of any faith. My faith is true and clear to me, and I don't need anyone to explain it to me. But...) I love meeting interesting people that challenge and expand my paradigms, and I have found them in the most exciting, and sometimes, surprising... places.

In my spiritual path, I've studied: Christianity, Gnosticism, Sufism, Tantra, Kaballah, Hinduism, and mythology (religion before it became cool to be monotheistic)...

and I've sat in circle, or at the feet of, elders and shamen from many of the world's indigenous groups, including: Quechua (Peru and Bolivian), Zapotec, Huichol, Mayan, Aztec, (Mexico and Guatamala), Mi'kmaq (Canada), Tibetan, Tiwa (Taos Pueblo), Mescalero Apache, various Aboriginal (Australian), various Polynesian (Hawaii and Tahiti), Maori, Inuit, Dine' (Navaho), Lakota/Sioux, Cherokee, various African, hoodoo (Cuba, Caribbean, and New Orleans groups), European pagans of all ilk, various Russian indigenous groups, and Indian gurus and tantriki. <These are just the ones I remember.>

Some of my most powerful spiritual experiences have come from sitting with some of the most widely-known women in the world, including: The Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers, Vandada Shiva, the Indian saint Amma, and Flordemayo.

So it's not entirely surprising why I get along with many types of people, and especially the ones that tend towards the earth-centered and community-centered traditions.
You can't be in heart-centered circles with someone, and not see eye-to-eye.
And for that, I am grateful.

Note to self:
These things are what make me the best of who I am.
I need to cultivate more of this experience on a regular basis, so I can keep growing!!

♥